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Crowdfunding Spotlight: Bastaroid by Greg Meldrum and Scott Twells

By John Freeman on March 1, 2025

If you’re a fan of the comic zine PARAGON and titles from Peter Duncan’s Sector 13 Comics, you’ll already be familiar with the work of writer Greg Meldrum and artist Scott Twells. Now they’ve partnered on a new brand-new sci-fi comic project – Bastaroid, a story set in the far future, where mankind is extinct.

Bastaroid by Greg Meldrum and Scott Twells

Left behind are its creations, both genetic and cybernetic, and its post-human descendants. But who maintains order in this chaotic cosmos? One great big lump of rock – with attitude!

Currently seeking support on Kickstarter, its modest target already smashed, this is the story of the Bastaroid and its misfit crew – skivvy-bot Blatt, wannabe warrior-droid Fulford and the tree-grown Rexx, a hairy ball of rage. Together, the intrepid outcasts cross the galaxy, investigating a nefarious plot to exterminate what life yet remains.

Created by Greg Meldrum and Scott Twells, with lettering by regular collaborator Filippo Roncone, the first issue of Bastaroid includes a full-colour 44-page adventure, along with bonus design illustrations and pin-ups from Scott Twells’s sketchbook.

“Bastaroid really has been a total collaboration between me and Scott from the outset,” says Greg. “We bounced ideas off each other extensively at the start of the project, and the story evolved in response to the art.”

“Scott Twells is one of our favourite artists at Sector 13,” enthuses Peter Duncan. “As editor, he’s one of the artists I’ve selected to draw some of my own strips.

“I’m lucky enough to have been able to read it early and it’s one of the books I’ve enjoyed most in the past while.

“Greg is a great writer and he’s playing up to Scott’s fantastic design skills, storytelling and most especially colouring.

“If I have to recommend just one Kickstarter this year (apart from our own) then it would be this one.”

Greg Meldrum’s many scripts for British independent comics include contributions to Doctor WTF?!, Dogbreath, Disconnected, The Psychedelic Journal of Time Travel, Massacre For Boys Picture Library and, most significantly, PARAGON, where his long-running creation, Spencer Nero, has been appearing since 2011. He’s also published his own comics, including Martillo, Gallo, and The Spencer Nero Club.

Scott Twells comics career started in 2008 with the now defunct webcomic anthology busyslacker, where he created many series and random artworks including scifi soap opera “SJ4K”, vigilante tale “Blue Lighter Cult”, and zombie survival stories” East, through the deadland” and Hughmanity”, the remains of which can be seen here.

Since then he’s branched out into print, with one shot HumaGeddon, a zombie tale with a twist published in 2011, Zompokalypse, a zombie tale without a twist, Bounty Hunter, The Trial Run. His credits span titles such as Nightmare Illustrated, Dogbreath, PARAGON, The Adventures of Punk and Rock, and more.

• Check out Bastaroid here on Kickstarter

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.